Daily Current Affairs 24 May 2024

Daily Current Affairs 24 May 2024

1. Jenny Erpenbeck’s ‘Kairos’ wins International Booker Prize

• “Kairos” by Jenny Erpenbeck, translated by Michael Hofmann, has won the International Booker Prize 2024.
• This novel, originally written in German, follows a destructive affair between a young woman and an older man in 1980s East Berlin.
• It intertwines the personal and the political as the two lovers seemingly embody East Germany’s crushed idealism.
• Erpenbeck becomes the first German writer to win the International Booker Prize, and Hofmann is the first male translator to win.
• The £50,000 prize is split equally between author Jenny Erpenbeck and translator Michael Hofmann, giving each equal recognition.

2. World Turtle Day 2024

• World Turtle Day is celebrated annually on 23 May.
• This day is observed annually to raise awareness about the lifestyle and habitat of turtles and tortoises, and to urge people to understand them better and contribute to their wellbeing.
• The day was first observed in the year 2000 by American Tortoise Rescue.
• The celebration includes a variety of activities such as coloring pages, fact sheets, templates, and more to celebrate turtles and tortoises with fun and education.

3. Manchester City wins historic fourth in row title at Premier League

• Manchester City has made history by becoming the first team to win four consecutive Premier League titles.
• This historic achievement was sealed with a 3-1 victory over West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium.
• Phil Foden scored two early goals, and Rodri added another in the second half.
• The win ensured that Manchester City finished two points ahead of second-placed Arsenal.
• This is the sixth time in seven seasons that Manchester City, under the leadership of Pep Guardiola, has won the Premier League.

4. Dinesh Kartik announced retirement from IPL

• Dinesh Karthik, the veteran wicket-keeper batter, has announced his retirement from the Indian Premier League (IPL) after the 2024 season.
• The announcement came after Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the team he was playing for, lost in the Eliminator match against Rajasthan Royals.
• Karthik, who had hinted that this IPL would be his last, received a guard of honour from his teammates after the conclusion of the match.
• He made his debut in the T20 league 16 years ago and remains one of the finest finishers in this format of the sport.
• He ends his IPL career with 4,842 runs in 257 matches, studded with a whopping 22 fifties.

5. Scientist Srinivas R. Kulkarni honoured with prestigious Shaw Prize in Astronomy

• Srinivas R. Kulkarni, an Indian-origin American scientist and the George Ellery Hale Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Science at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), has been awarded the prestigious Shaw Prize in Astronomy for 2024.
• He has been recognized for his groundbreaking discoveries about millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, and other transient astronomical phenomena.
• The Shaw Prize, often referred to as the ‘Nobel of the East’, carries a monetary prize of $1.2 million and is awarded annually in three categories: astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical sciences.

6. GoI sets up Committee to tackle Southeast Asian Cybercrimes

• The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of India has set up an inter-ministerial committee to tackle the surge in transnational organized cybercrime originating from Southeast Asian countries like Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, and the Philippines.
• The committee is led by the special secretary (internal security) of the MHA and includes members from the Reserve Bank of India, the Department of Financial Services, banks, the Financial Intelligence Unit, the Department of Telecommunication, and financial technology companies.
• The committee’s mandate is to devise long-term strategies to combat these cybercrimes and mitigate their impact.
• It was reported that about 45% of cyber-financial frauds in India originate from Southeast Asia.

7. IIT Guwahati, Columbia University developed an Optical Nanopatterning Process

• Scientists from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati) and Columbia University have developed an innovative method for optical nanopatterning.
• This process involves creating patterns on materials at the nanometer scale, crucial for devices such as advanced light detectors, solar cells, lasers, and light-emitting diodes.
• The team, led by Dr. Rishi Maiti, Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics at IIT Guwahati, used a technique known as “optical driving” to induce vibrations in materials at their resonance frequency.
• This resulted in precise cleavage along clean lines, creating nanostructures.
• The researchers were able to trap phonon-polaritons, unique quasi-particles formed from the interaction of light and vibrations.

8. World’s highest observatory inaugurated in Chile by University of Tokyo

• The University of Tokyo has inaugurated the world’s highest observatory, the Atacama Observatory (TAO), on 30 April, 2024.
• Located at an altitude of 5,640 meters on the summit of Cerro Chajnantor in northern Chile, TAO houses a 6.5-meter optical-infrared telescope.
• The observatory aims to unravel mysteries of the universe, such as dark energy and primordial first stars.
• The project, which took 26 years of planning and construction, was led by Emeritus Professor Yuzuru Yoshii. The inauguration of TAO marks a significant milestone in the field of astronomy.

9. UAE President confers first-class medal of independence on ambassador of Paraguay

• UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has conferred the First-Class Medal of Independence on José Agüero Avila, the Ambassador of the Republic of Paraguay to the UAE.
• This prestigious award was given in recognition of Avila’s efforts during his tenure, which significantly contributed to the development and advancement of bilateral relations across various fields.
• The medal was presented to Avila by Reem Bint Ebrahim Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation, during a meeting held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• This honor is a testament to the strong diplomatic ties between the UAE and Paraguay and the significant role Avila played in strengthening these relations.

10. Australia to host AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026

• The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has officially announced that Australia will host the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup.
• The Women’s Asian Cup is a quadrennial international football tournament competed by the women’s national teams in the Asian Football Confederation.
• The 2026 edition will be the 21st edition of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup.
• The final tournament will serve as the final stage of Asian qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
• The matches of the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup will take place in New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia.
• This will be the second time Australia has hosted the Women’s Asian Cup, with the first being in 2006.